VERMILLION – As seniors who serve in support roles as members of the South Dakota men’s basketball team, Austin Sparks and Joshua Doss have endeared themselves to coaches, teammates and the campus at large.

It’s one thing for a player to say he’s all about the team. It’s another to embrace a role that doesn't include a lot of playing time -- and all the while bring to it a level of energy that makes an impact.

Sparks, a 6-8 center, is a Denver native in his fifth year in Vermillion and is the last player on the team whose connection to the program dates back to being a recruit from the Dave Boots era. Doss, a 6-4 guard, is a Chicago native who transferred from Triton College.

It would not be correct to say these two don’t contribute in games. Sparks fills in for Trey Burch-Manning and Tyler Hagedorn and Doss gives the guards a breather at junctures in games where the outcomes are in doubt.

Based on their minutes and points, graduating and moving on will not fall into the “key losses” next season. But there is more to it than that. Way more in this case.

“We’re going to miss Joshua and Austin in a major way,” South Dakota coach Craig Smith said. “I’m not sure the guys realize the dynamic that they bring. There are roles for everybody whether they’re playing 35 minutes or spend time most of their time on the bench. Their minutes have been sporadic, but in the end they’ve had a positive impact because of their leadership. We’re talking about people of substance.”

Doss, a political science major, wants to return to Chicago and get involved in politics. He’s not sure yet whether he wants to go to law school or get a graduate degree in public administration. Sparks, a kinesiology and sports science major, wants to become the world’s first 6-foot-8 strength and conditioning coach.

Both have thought a lot about what they’re involved in with the 22-6 Coyotes and both have decided they’re all in, regardless of playing time.

“It’s tough because everybody who gets to this level used to be the best player on their team somewhere,” Doss said. “It’s different from what I’m used to in that regard but handling it isn’t that hard when you’re winning. Being where we are right now at 22-6 means things are working. That’s good with me.”

His role includes winning a lot of debates with teammates via being better informed. He also serves as "Matt Mooney's bodyguard" according to Smith.

"The chemistry on this team is so real," Doss said. "We actually hang out together, we actually mix the group up. There are no cliques. And it shows. When we play well it has a lot to do with our preparation and our coaching but it's also about how real our chemistry is."

Sparks has been through seasons at USD where the wins have not been as steady as they’ve been the last two seasons. He’s also had stints where he’s played more than he’s played this year, but the commitment has never wavered. Smith has been talking about Sparks’ work-ethic since shortly after the coach was hired.

“I went from not playing at all to starting after Tyler Flack got hurt last year,” Sparks said. “And then going back to not playing again was difficult. If I had plans to play after college, maybe that would make it tougher, but I don’t. What I want is to win, more than anything. I want to do the little things nobody else does.”

It translates to being instruments of inspiration at practice. Neither of them, in Smith’s estimation, have down days.

“Every single day these two are going to bring it,” the coach said. “And the other players know that. They know that if they’re taking it easy, they’re going to be embarrassed by these two guys.”

Doss’ high school is known as being the place the musical “Grease” is based on. The play’s co-author Jim Jacobs graduated from Taft High School in 1960. Doss has tried to get his teammates to understand the significance but it’s been sort of a struggle.

“No one believed me,” he said. “Every year we had a ‘Grease’ day. We’d all dress up like the people did in the movie. (Jacobs) comes back once in a while and talks to classes."

Austin Sparks is a senior on the South Dakota men's basketball team.(Photo: Aaron C Packard)

As much as basketball has been a focal point of their lives, they’ve also been seen on the actual campus mixing with actual students. In Sparks’ case, he’s been so involved in various charities and fraternity and sorority functions that he’s had to slow down a bit to save some energy for basketball.

As a testament to this, last Sunday a non-conference mismatch against Peru State was billed as “Austin Sparks’ Birthday Bash” by USD. It included free cake.

Over the years, members of the school’s sports marketing team had been publicly wishing Sparks a happy birthday on video boards as a joke at various events. By their count, the Peru State game would be the 100th time they’d mentioned his birthday. It was also, for the first time ever, his actual birthday.

“Austin does it all,” Smith said. “He’s fighting cancer, he’s helping with Special Olympics, he’s a tremendous ambassador for the University of South Dakota and certainly for our program.”

Jokes aside, Sparks has definitely made the most of his college experience.

“I thought there was some disconnect with our team and the community when I got here,” he said. “There were guys who weren’t willing to go out and meet new people. We were very secluded within our own community. So I went out and I got involved in Greek life and started volunteering with DakotaThon.”

His time as a volunteer dates back to helping build houses for “Habitat for Humanity” as a high school student. It continues to hit home for a player his coach says “Opens his arms and his heart to everybody.”

“With the Dakotathon kids, some of them have the worst illnesses you could think of,” Sparks said. “Just to give them a day where they can feel good and have some fun -- that’s a great feeling. No matter what kind of money you raise, you get to see the face of a person you helped. That’s the most rewarding thing.”

Smith would be the first to say that on a team that has been distinctive for its chemistry, a coach needs players like Doss and Sparks to do their parts. It may be difficult to define how it all fits together in some cases, but it’s easy to see when it's not there.

“We love everything these guys stand for,” Smith said. “Whenever they speak up, our guys listen because they know what kind of people they are. Their contributions have been tremendous.”